


Mistakes

by TurtleTotem



Series: Post-XMA [2]
Category: X-Men (Alternate Timeline Movies)
Genre: Happy Ending, M/M, Post-Apocalypse, The Boys Use Their Words For Once, in the X-Men sense of Apocalypse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-10
Updated: 2019-11-10
Packaged: 2021-01-26 17:08:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21377581
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TurtleTotem/pseuds/TurtleTotem
Summary: The morning after, aka sequel to "Like Old Times," as requested by Ikeracity.(Tumblr link.)
Relationships: Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier
Series: Post-XMA [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1541125
Comments: 8
Kudos: 44





	Mistakes

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ikeracity](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ikeracity/gifts).

When Charles woke, Erik was gone.

He told himself it was no more than he’d expected, and no more than he deserved—that really, there was no other way for this to go. At least he’d been spared having to watch Erik wake, and remember what he’d done, and recoil from it. With any luck, they could both just pretend that their ill-advised interlude hadn’t happened. They could still be friends, at least, if they could just—ignore it—

That was when he heard water running in the bathroom, and realized Erik hadn’t left at all. The awkwardness still had to be lived through.

Charles pulled himself to a sitting position, rubbing his face and trying to gather his strength. Trying to settle on a facial expression that would communicate to Erik that he didn’t expect anything from him, one that wouldn’t be sad or pleading or any of the things he wasn’t allowed to feel right now, things that were tearing their way out of his chest anyway.

And then it was too late, Erik was coming out of the bathroom, still toweling his hands and wearing nothing but the sunlight through the window. Charles didn’t know what his face looked like, he only knew that he felt like he’d been punched in the stomach.

Erik, seeing that he was awake, stopped in the bathroom doorway like a half-tamed animal, ready to flee back into the forest.

Charles took a breath. “It’s morning now.”

“Yes.”

Charles found himself running a hand over his bare head again, and irritably shoved the offending hand under his leg. “Right then. Of course this won’t happen again, and really I see no reason why we can’t go on as we were—”

“What?” Erik stepped closer. “Why won’t this happen again?”

Flummoxed by the obviousness of the answer, Charles didn’t reply.

“Ah,” Erik said. “I'll… I’ll go then.” He brushed past the bed and began gathering his clothes. Charles fancied he didn’t even need telepathy to feel the waves of hurt and humiliation radiating from Erik’s mind.

“Erik, wait. Erik!”

Erik stopped moving, but kept his back to Charles. “Feelings change, Charles, I understand. Mine haven’t, but it's—fine. Like I said, I’ll go.”

“I don’t know how you can stand there and tell me your feelings have never changed when you _married_ someone else. Someone you lost very recently and very traumatically. I’m trying to respect that!” Charles was horrified to hear his voice break. “I’m trying not to make things worse.”

“How much worse do you really think they can get, Charles?” Erik turned around at last, shoulders slumped and defeated. “I loved Magda—I still do—but she’s gone. Nothing I do or don’t do now changes that. Last night, for a little while, I felt like I might still be capable of… I don’t know. Wanting to live, instead of being grimly determined not to die. Don’t you dare sit there and tell me that was a _mistake_.”

_You and I were always a mistake_, Charles thought, _and always will be_. _A mistake I’ll keep making over and over_. “I love you,” he said, and more importantly, “Don’t go.”

Erik came back to the bed, and kissed him with as much anger as love. Charles didn’t mind that, not from Erik. What mattered was that he stayed.


End file.
